| The Money Lender and His Wife | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Quentin Matsys |
| Year | 1514 |
| Medium | Oil on panel |
| Dimensions | 70.5 cm × 67 cm (27.8 in × 26 in) |
| Location | Louvre,Paris |
The Money Changer and His Wife is a 1514oil-on-panel painting by theFlemish Renaissance artistQuentin Matsys, currently in theLouvre.
A man, who is weighing the jewels and pieces of gold on the table in front of him sits next to his wife who is reading abook of devotion with an illustration of theVirgin andChild.[1] The couple is not dressed as members of nobility, but rather as well-to-do burghers ofAntwerp, where the painting was made. At the time, Antwerp had grown with the influx of many southern immigrants fleeing theSpanish Inquisition. Among this international community there was a demand for money-changers and money-lenders, as international commerce was increasing in the port city.
The same motif was used 25 years later by Matsys' follower, the painterMarinus van Reymerswaele.
This painting was copied in a painting of the gallery ofCornelis van der Geest byWillem van Haecht a century later in the 1620s. Van der Geest was an admirer of Matsys' work and owned several of his paintings, includingThe Moneylender and His Wife. He also commemorated Matsys' hundredth death anniversary with a new plaque in theAntwerp Cathedral.[2]
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